Floor leaders of the Rajya Sabha at a meeting with Chairman Venkaiah Naidu ahead of the winter session of Parliament that begins on Monday, expressed concern over the Supreme Court Chief Justice’s recent remarks on disruptions in Parliament.
Chief Justice N.V. Ramana, speaking at the 75th Independence Day function organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association, complained about lack of debate in Parliament. He said it is a “sorry state of affairs” and that absence of quality debate leaves many aspects of the laws unclear, increasing the burden on the court.
The floor leaders said it is for the Presiding Officers to take appropriate action if the norms of functioning are being violated in the legislatures and other constitutional agencies should not comment adversely, sources said. They did not, however, name Justice Ramana.
In response, Chairman Naidu said, “I can understand your concerns. But such comments should be viewed in the context of the functioning of legislatures marked by persistent disruptions, unruly behaviour and violent actions which have deleterious effects. The best way to counter them is to ensure proper functioning of the legislatures by ensuring their dignity and decorum since such comments are finding resonance with the public from what they see about the functioning of the legislatures.”
About 40 leaders of various parties and Ministers attended the meeting.
A few Opposition leaders —BJD’s Prasanna Acharya, BSP Satish Chandra Mishra, CPI(M) John Brittas and CPI Binoy Viswam expressed concern over the course of events during the last monsoon session. They also said a repeat of the monsoon session should be avoided.
As per the RS Secretariat’s analysis, 70% of the functional time of the House was lost due to persistent disruptions.
Mr. Naidu urged the Government and the leaders of the Opposition to regularly talk to each other to enable effective functioning of the House. He appealed to all sections to cooperate in ensuring a productive winter session.
